Duo's Affinity

Prologue

I sigh. Ang hirap pala kapag fresh graduate ka. Akala ko dati, when I finished a degree hindi na ako mahihirapang maghanap ng trabaho.

Napatingala ako sa asul na kalangitan. Naitukod ko ang dalawang mga nakabukang palad  sa bermuda grass kung saan din ako kasalukuyang  nakaupo habang nakatingala sa kalangitan. May mga iilang love birds ang nakikita kong masayang lumilipad.

I wonder, ano kayang pakiramdam na maging ibon? Siguro di ako mahihirapang makipagbuno sa agos ng buhay.

I smiled bitterly. Habang tumatanda talaga, nakakabaliw.

Tangina. Graduate ako ng college. Professional license ako, pero bullshit! Yaya ako slash kasambahay? Tapos sahod ko 6k per month?

Imagine?! Almost 25k tuition ko per semester just to earn my degree tapos ganito?

Nakakaiyak.

Don't get me wrong. I don't have anything against kasambahay and Yaya jobs. They are decent jobs. But fuck it! This is not what I pictured my life would become. Mas mataas dito yong pangarap ko. I'm more than this. I want more!

But what can I do? Kapag aantayin ko pa yong makapasok sa propesyong tinapos ko, baka itakwil na ako ng lahat. I need a job immediately. For my family. For my siblings. For my mom. Maliit pa mga kapatid ko at lahat sila nag-aaral pa. Magkokolehiyo na yong dalawa. So I need to swallow my damn pride. I need to set aside my ambitions, my dreams.

Sanaol kasi iniinom lang ang swerte.

This is the reality.

Hindi kami bubuyahin ng propesyong ko na kailangan pa ng puntanginang experience para makapasok. Nang pangmalakasang kapit in order to get the job. Mga utak monggo. Hello?!Fresh graduate nga diba. Wala namang kurso na nagooffer ng BACHELOR Of ********* MAJOR IN ****** WITH EXPERIENCE.

Mapapaputangina ka nalang talaga ng malutong. Minsan gusto ko nalang lumipat sa mars.

I stretched my legs and close my eyes habang ninanamnam ang kapayapaang ng hangin sa Burnham Park. This is how I spend my twice-a-month dayoff sa pagiging Yaya at Kasambahay. Despite sa mga hinanakit at hinaing ko sa buhay, I'm still thankful that I found a family in here. TagaMindanao ako na napapadpad dito para suportahan at samahan sa pag-aaral ang kapatid ko na babae. Dito kasi siya nag-aaral. And to hopefully find a job related to my profession which is unfortunately, didn't happen because of the pandemic.

Speaking of. Nagkikita talaga kami dito ng kapatid ko every dayoff ko para mabigay ko din sa kanya yong konting allowance niya for her boarding house and food allowance at pamasahe na din. Since scholar naman siya sa BCU, medyo na lilessen yong gastos naming dalawa.

Another good thing sa pagiging Yaya at Kasambahay ko is that, verything is free. Except sa clothing ko, lahat libre. And their WiFi is excellent, that's why I am able to study my masters online. Tuwing 1AM to 4AM in the morning yong schedule ko so it's super convenient for me. Di ko manineglek yong trabaho ko. Besides, tulog yong baby  na inaalagaan ko sa mga oras na yon.

If your wondering, kung bakit sa madaling araw schedule ko, it's because I'm taking my masters in Yale. International scholar ako, perks na din siguro for having an A+ transcript of records. May naging silbi naman ang pagpupuyat at pagsisikap kong mag-aral sa kolehiyo kahit papaano.

Pag itong masters ko tatanggihan pa kapag nagapply ako ng work, ewan ko nalang talaga. Baka magpatransfer nalang talaga ako ng nationality.

Oh well. Despite naman sa mga shortcomings ko sa life, naniniwala pa rin ako na, God's plan is better than mine. Kung hindi ko man natutupad ngayon ang mga hangarin ko, I'm still doing every little thing that I can para maabot yon. At least kahit paunti unti may ginagawa ako. Maybe life is hard for me today, and for the days to come pero there are still things that I'm thankful for. May mga instrument pa din si God na pinapadala sakin to help me stand on my feet.

I open my eyes and surveyed my surroundings. There are few couples na naglalampungan sa mga benches. And from where I'm sitting, a back of a guy wearing a black varsity jacket is facing my direction. Hindi siya malayo pero hindi rin siya malapit. That's why I was able to see him tapping something on his phone which is positioned in a landscape manner.

The guy was so engrossed in whatever his doing kaya malaya akong napagmasadan ito.

Nagbiblink yong phone niya, and I saw a glimpse of what it seems like cute graphics of AI clashing. Then I heard a savage and wiped out.

I saw the guy's hand's knuckles crumpling like a paper that is about to be toss into the trash bin. The guy's head face sideways making me see his peripheral view.

My lips parted. What the.

His nose is as sharp as my razor blade. I think it could cut a watermelon into half. His smirking lips could melt the ice in antarctica. Brows that seems to be perfectly sculpted by Michaelangelo. And the adams apple... Heck! I wish ako nalang yong laway niya. Parang iniimbitahan akong halika-

"What an actual hell Evanescence." Mahinang usal ko. Kailan pa ako nagiging mahalay? Inalis ko ang tingin dun sa lalaki at mariing napapikit.

I don't have time for worldly pleasure or any cringe shits.

You have too much on your plates Eva. You don't need distractions. Wag ka ng magdagdag ng sakit ng ulo.